


Learning to Live in Ooo

by throwaway556



Category: Adventure Time
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-21
Packaged: 2021-03-25 15:13:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30091026
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/throwaway556/pseuds/throwaway556
Summary: Simon's been gone for a long time. The few memories he has are contorted, and aren't helpful for his adjustment to living in Ooo. Fortunately, he has family and friends who will help him.Feel the need to say it- I'm still continuing Diplomacy and Bloodshed, just not a ton of time to write. This was just a small idea that I'm interested in infrequently exploring.
Comments: 3
Kudos: 6





	1. Chapter 1

The alarm went off and Simon stirred. That alarm was his only indication that it was morning, considering his residence was in the middle of a pitch-black cave. He let out a silent sigh. He was laying down on a comfortable surface and under a weighted blanket, meaning he was back in the bed. He opened his eyes and saw what he expected.  
He had no objections to living with Marceline. He didn’t have anywhere else to go or anyone else who knew him. And there was obviously the fact that he loved and needed her more than ever right now. But since he moved in, they had been getting into not so serious cold wars.  
His sleeping arrangement was the most notable. On the first night, he was going to sleep on her couch. Only for her to laugh and take him to her bed.  
“I float over it anyway; I’ll just float over the floor next to it instead.” She had said. It worked, but he still didn’t like feeling like he was kicking her out of her bed- even if she didn’t sleep in it.  
On the second day, he spotted an air mattress that she tucked away in her closet. He was tired from his research and must have collapsed while blowing it up. He woke up the next day where he had started his last. He looked to his left, and she was floating next to him again.  
On the third day, he made sure to blow up the mattress and set it downstairs. He wouldn’t invade her room again. Well, he knew he fell asleep on the air mattress that night. And he knew he had set it downstairs next to the couch. But when he woke up, he was in her bed again. The air mattress was on the floor next to the bed, with her hovering over it.  
On the fourth day, he thought he found a loophole. He made a big show about getting some of his old books from the Ice Kingdom. Of course, she helped him get everything. She even tried arguing that he should just make a list and she’d do all the lifting. When evening finally came, he retired to a make shift work station he had set up. He scribbled down notes and read through passages of ancient books he had already memorized. He just needed to look busy enough that it looked like he would be up all night.  
And it worked. He woke up the fifth morning slouched over a book. His shoulders were stiff, but he had successfully avoided stealing her bed for the night.  
Unfortunately, she caught on faster than he had hoped. That afternoon, he was cooking his lunch after preparing a bowl of strawberries for her. She had been looking at him funny the entire time while he cooked. When she spoke, it started out innocent enough.  
“Why are you holding yourself like that?”  
“What do you mean, Marceline?”  
“You’re slouching. You never slouch.”  
“Oh, I must not have noticed.”  
He slowly erected his back, but betrayed himself with an unconscious groan. He looked back to find her eyes fixated on him. The minute he stepped away from the stove, she snatched him. He was taken into the other room and laid on his stomach.  
“Marcy, what are you doing?”  
“Just stay still for a sec.”  
He felt her elbows against his shoulders. Pressure, then he heard two pops. The stiffness was gone, but so was any realistic hope that he would sleep at his desk again. In stubbornness, he tried it anyway. But as he expected, he woke up in the bed again. This time, she floated above him. A note was in her hands addressed to him.  
I’m going keep moving you here, so just accept it.  
And then there was last night. He was finishing with his research. He had gone to see Finn and Jake in their temporary home to return the key to Prismo’s time room. It was late and they offered to let him spend the night on their couch. Well apparently, he wasn’t safe in their home either. He opened his eyes and looked up. Marceline was floating above him again, holding another note with his name on it. He carefully took it from between her fingers.  
This is the first real bed you’ve slept in for the past one thousand years. Please let me help you relax.  
He sighed again. It was true. She just wanted to help him. In fact, all of these small little wars were just her trying to take care of him while he pushed back. It wasn’t that he didn’t want her help. It was that he didn’t feel he deserved it, or that she should be obligated to help him for that matter.  
She stirred. Was she going to wake up?  
“Oh duh, she must have set that alarm. I wasn’t home.”  
Marceline turned over and looked at him. She smiled at him.  
“I know you think you’re kicking me out of my bed or leaching off of me by sleeping in my room. But Simon I need you to understand that you aren’t doing either of those things.”  
He let out a small laugh.  
“And how long do you intend to keep this up?”  
“Well, from what you told me yesterday, you’re ageless. So forever I guess.” She grinned.  
He let out a much stronger laugh. She spoke up again.  
“Honestly, I don’t know. Simon, I want you to be happy and I need you to be safe. I know that we agreed yesterday that not aging sucks, but knowing that I’ll have people I actually like by my side make it suck a lot less.”  
“Love you too Marcy. But still, you can’t do this forever. At some point, I need to move out so that Bonnibel can move in. At the very least, I need my own room.”  
“I know. The room we can work on soon, I promise. But Bonnie moving in… that’s a long way from happening. She has to make sure her kingdom won’t blow up the second she’s gone for more than an hour first. So, we probably have a couple of years before you go house hunting. And even then, I’m more than willing to let you stay.”  
It was true. Marceline had taken Simon to the Candy Kingdom for his first physical in a thousand years. Prismo had said that Betty’s wish would prevent him from getting sick, but Marceline didn’t want to take chances. When they got to it, it was clear that most of its citizens had about as much common sense as a pile of rocks.  
He sat up. She inched out of his way, and he got off the bed. He made his way to the desk and sat down. She followed, but continued to lie upside-down while floating next to him.  
“Marcy you know I’m not going to stay once you two start living together. You two need to be free to be alone with each other. Plus, it would just be weird. I mean, she’d have to somehow compete with me for your attention, and that would just be embarrassing for her.”  
She playfully slugged him on the arm.  
“I know. I still kind of hope it could some how work out. We could even build a house for you at the entrance of the cave.”  
“Don’t get me wrong Marceline, but I hope to live in a house that isn’t in a cave one day.”  
She smiled and let out a laugh.  
“Yeah, you and your big dreams.” Her smile slowly faded and she spoke again.  
“Before you do eventually move out, you need to learn how to live in Ooo. And before you say it, yes you do need to learn, Simon.”  
“I agree.”  
“Oh.” She stuttered. “I kind of had this entire speech planned out to convince you. Glad I didn’t have to use it.”  
“Well, let’s hear it then.”  
“I don’t know, it’s kind of—”  
“You can’t just tell me you had a speech planned and then not give it to me. I’ll just keep bugging you for it.”  
“Okay, fine.”  
She took a deep breath.  
“Simon, so much has changed since you were, well you. Plants have evolved and now eat people, monsters and mutated freaks are all around, a ton of princesses will probably want you in chains for kidnapping them when you weren’t yourself, not to mention all the magical weirdos and other junk. I want to keep you as happy and safe as I can, but if you do end up moving out, I need to know that you’ll be okay. Don’t get me wrong, I’ll come to your rescue whenever you get yourself into trouble. But I’ll sleep a lot easier knowing you actually know how to live in Ooo. You’re ageless, not deathless, and if something bad were to happen to you, now that you’re finally back—now that I have you back forever, I don’t know what I would do.”  
Simon was silent. He took the time to look into her eyes, and moved his finger to dry the cheeks under them. Everything she had done, and would continue to do was to help him. And after all, she was right. He needed to learn how to live in this land. Learning would be the best way to put her at ease. And who knows, maybe after he learned she would stop all of the overprotective actions.  
“So, are you going to teach me?”  
“I’ll teach you some parts. Mostly the cool stuff. But I’ve been thinking. We might both be ageless, but you’re still a lot easier to kill than I am because of my self-healing. So, we need someone who is good at living in Ooo without it. I was thinking Finn and Jake could help with that.”  
“Sounds like a plan.”  
“I also want Bonnie to help. She’s the go to when it comes to laws and all of the boring stuff.”  
“And an oh so convenient excuse for you to hang out with her.”  
“You think I need an excuse to hangout with her? Please.”  
“I’m just teasing Marcy.”  
“I know. But you’re half right. Kind of. It’s actually an excuse for you to hang out with her. It’s important to me that you two get along.”  
“I don’t envision that I couldn’t get along with someone who loves you Marcy.”  
I’m not concerned you wouldn’t get along with Bonnie. I’m concerned she may not get along with you.”  
“What do you mean?”  
“You don’t remember, but when you were out of it, you kidnapped her. A lot. Like, every other day and then some.”  
“I see. Yes, that would muddy the relationship.”  
“If Bonnie can learn about and spend time with the real you, I know that you’ll both get along. I think teaching you will be the best way to do both of those.”  
“Well, it won’t hurt. So, when do we start my lessons?”  
“No need to rush for now. I’m thinking I’ll start teaching you some cool stuff as we hang out, and I’ll let the others teach you how they want whenever they’re available.”  
“Whatever you think works best.”


	2. Lesson One

Nightfall. It had been two weeks since their heart to heart. Simon was getting ready for bed. He and Marceline had managed to finally came to a satisfactory understanding on the sleeping situation. He no longer slept on her bed or in her room. Instead, he slept in her living room on a bed he picked out from one of the guest rooms in Bubblegum’s castle. He didn’t feel like he was invading her privacy, and she was happy he had an actual bed to sleep on- the closest thing to a win-win they were going to get. Her couch and television had been temporarily moved into the closet in order to make room for the new arrangement, but no one really minded. She never used the couch, and her guests often complained about how sore it had made them. The television was more of an aesthetic than an entertainment device at this point. Everyone who came to the house had already seen every movie at least twice. And unless they had a particularly lucky find, no new movies would present themselves.  
Simon laid down and pulled the covers over him. He was beginning to get used to his new life. Granted, there were hiccups. His conventional definitions of life were certainly challenged. Marceline and Bubblegum had taken him to meet an assortment of princesses- one was a rag doll, another a slime creature, yet another seemed to be made entirely of breakfast foods. He believed these new forms of life were due to a combination of the large-scale return of magic, and the ramifications of the nuclear war that had taken place lifetimes ago. It didn’t help to dwell on the situation- there was no clear answer. Nor was it important for his current circumstance. First and foremost, he needed to learn to live in Ooo. And while a limited understanding was required, he certainly didn’t need esoteric fundamentals- especially when most of the inhabitants, Marceline included, didn’t know them either.  
He shut his eyes and hoped to drift off to sleep. Then he heard a light giggle. He quickly opened his eyes and braced himself for what might be coming. His blanket was ripped off him while invisible arms found their ways under his back and legs. He was air born.  
“Marceline, I thought we were done with this.”  
“Relax, Simon. I’m not going back on my promise. We’re officially beginning your lessons.”  
“He blinked. At this hour?”  
“You do realize you’re speaking with a creature of the night, right? Besides, my house, my rules.”  
“I’m not objecting, I’m just curious as to what lesson you have planned.”  
“I wouldn’t necessarily say I have anything planned… more like a nice walk for the three of us to enjoy.”  
“Three?”  
Marceline materialized and gently set him down. She floated across the room to look out the window before returning to him. She reached her arm across his shoulders and turned him towards the door.  
“You, me, and Bonnie. Most of your time together so far have been pretty dull. Meeting princesses you don’t need to remember, or discussing a lesson plan for the legal stuff. Bleh. Tonight, you get to meet Bonnie without all that boring stuff.”  
“Okay. Just give me a second to change out of these pajamas.”  
“Nah, no need for that. They’re a good look for you.”  
“You’re just saying that because the top has your face on it.”  
He looked down at himself. Getting clothing was one of the first things he had set out on after getting settled. Backup pairs of glasses were easier to get than he thought. But the clothing was actually difficult. He went scavenging with Marceline and Finn to find anything that would fit him. In truth, this part wasn’t that difficult. What was difficult was choosing anything he actually wanted to wear. He, and Marceline for that matter, preferred his formal look. Suits and finer jackets weren’t exactly commonly produced anymore. He was lucky enough to find a brown jacket, as well as track down a few of his older suits in the Ice Kingdom. At first, he entertained branching out from his traditional style. But quickly rethought this prospect at Marceline’s insistence.  
“Simon I can buy you any formal clothing you want. PB has connections with a ton of royal tailors.” She had said.  
It was tempting enough for him to take her up on it. Besides, he felt somewhat naked when he wasn’t wearing more formal attire in public. The pajamas were an exception. Marceline had the bright idea of giving him some of her merch. She was definitely pleased when she found a t-shirt his size with her head in the center. She made him put it on before disappearing into her closet. A minute later, she emerged wearing a slightly larger version.  
Come to think about it, he looked at her clothing for the first time that night. Low and behold, she was wearing the same t-shirt. He was going to mention the coincidence, but was interrupted by a knock at the door.  
“Its open, Bonnie.” Marceline called.  
The door swung open and in stepped the candy princess. Now Simon knew this has been coordinated, because she was wearing the shirt as well. She must have caught on just as fast.  
“Marceline why did you have me wear this tonight? Heck, why are you two wearing it tonight?” She asked.  
“Good question. Marcy, why are we all wearing your face?” Simon continued.  
Marceline let out a laugh.  
“Would you believe me if I said it was a spur of the moment decision?”  
Both shook their heads.  
“Okay, look. We’re going for a walk tonight, but its gonna be around Hamburger Hills Cemetery. Lots of ghosts and ghouls around, most of them are pretty jealous of the living. I’ve marked you as mine so they won’t bother you.”  
“So, you’ve marked us with your merch?” Bubblegum asked.  
“I mean, its either that or would have to turn you guys into vamps- something I doubt either of you would appreciate.” Marceline replied.  
“Why not just take a walk in another part of Ooo?” Simon asked.  
“Are you saying you don’t like wearing my merch Simon? Careful, you might hurt my feelings.” Marceline teased.  
“Just… why that Cemetery specifically?” He asked.  
Marceline floated across the room again and opened the door. She nodded her head and gestured with her eyes for the party to get a move on. Neither budged. Bubblegum crossed her arms while Simon raised an eyebrow. Marceline sighed.  
“We’re going to Hamburger Hills because I wanted to find some cool stuff.”  
“Grave robbing?” Bubblegum squinted. “You must be joking.”  
“Well its not like they’re using any of it. Besides, I’m still mad that they ruined my last concert.”  
“They did what?!”  
Bubblegum and Marceline turned towards the normally soft-spoken man at his sudden outburst. From their reactions, he could tell this wasn’t nearly as big of a deal as he thought. Simon sheepishly chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck.  
“Sorry, about that. I might have overreacted a bit.”  
Bubblegum let out a giggle which turned into a laugh. Marceline smiled and hovered over towards him and gave him a quick hug.  
“It was sweet. But don’t worry, I’ve learned how to handle my critics.” She said.  
The two looked over at the now barreled over Bubblegum. She slowly dried her eyes before turning towards them.  
“I’m sorry. Its just I’m pretty sure you were ready to go try and punch some ghosts while Marceline robbed their graves. I saw it playing it out in my head.” She said.  
“Well, Marcy’s always been my partner in crime so to speak. Although I did try to teach her that vandalism was wrong.”  
“You did. But would it still be a crime if I got them to throw their stuff at me instead of digging it up myself?”  
It was Simon’s turn for a whole-hearted laugh.  
“In that case, I’d call them gifts. And I taught you to never refuse a gift, Marceline.”  
“So, to Hamburger Hills then?” Marceline grinned at the pair.  
She looked at them. Bubblegum looked at the floor and shrugged while Simon tried to hide his own smile. Oh, they were definitely going to the cemetery. No way either would try to talk her out of it.  
“If we do this, what exactly will Simon get out of it? Don’t get me wrong, I’m with you on getting back on them, and I’m pretty sure from that smile, Simon’s on board as well. But if this is supposed to be an educational walk, what’s the lesson?” Bubblegum asked.  
“Isn’t that obvious PB?” Marceline moved to open the door, allowing the trio to exit into the cave.  
“Lesson one: How to have fun, Marceline Style.”  
***  
The group was flying back from the cemetery. Marceline had neglected to mention that by wearing her merch, things would definitely be thrown at them. But she was right, the ghosts- or those able to interact with the world of the living- wasted no time in digging up graves and chucking whatever they could find at the group. Sure, it started with bones and small rocks. But intime jewelry, pieces of nice clothing, and other buried treasures came their way as well. Marceline made sure to be at the front of the trio, letting herself be pelt with the incoming makeshift projectiles. She occasionally taunted, infuriating the cemetery’s residents even more. While Marceline drew their attention, Simon and Bubblegum looted anything that caught their eyes. Marceline discretely handed Bubblegum two bags she had brought, and the looting pair wasted no time in dumping their spoils into it. When the bag and their pockets were full, Marceline grabbed the pair and flew away.  
“That was a blast. Tell me you two got some cool stuff from those bozos.” Marceline asked.  
“Well, we certainly profited from the endeavor. But you didn’t get hurt, did you?” Simon asked.  
“It takes more than a couple of ghosts who can’t throw to even scratch me, Simon. I didn’t even feel anything. Promise.”  
“I have to admit, this was a wonderful idea Marceline. This stuff is easily a years’ worth of taxes. Plus, some of my citizens have been robbed by these guys in the past. This was a wonderful way to get back at them.” Bubblegum beamed.  
“Glad you liked it, Peebs.”  
“So, Simon. I know this isn’t the setting you imagined- certainly not the one I did- but Marceline’s told me a lot about you.” Bubblegum started.  
“Oh, has she. Well, considering what I’m told I’ve subjected you to, I hope at least some of them are good things.” Simon replied.  
“To be honest, I’m surprised you let her talk you into this. From the stories she’s told me, you didn’t have a mean bone in your body. So, helping her trick those goofs into throwing their valuables at us didn’t strike me as something you would do.”  
“Well, I’ve never really been that good at saying no to Marceline- I really only did it when things got really serious. I probably spoiled her rotten when she was a child. And to be honest, I was surprised when you agreed to go along with her plan as well. Although Marcy did mention you had a hidden wild side, so I guess I got to see that tonight.”  
“Yeah, well, a princess needs to let off some steam every once in a while. Marceline’s always been really good at helping me with that. Without her, I’d be in a pretty stressed and bent out of shape.”  
“Yeah, yeah chalk up your own actions to the girl flying you two home. Real intelligent plan coming from Ooo’s two greatest minds.” Marceline interrupted.  
They reached her doorstep and she set them down. Bubblegum dumped the contents of her bag onto the ground and emptied her pockets. Simon did the same.  
“I think this is a pretty good haul. We got some nice bling, some gold coins, and… Simon did you really take a book?” Marceline asked  
“It looked interesting. Besides, I need to start rebuilding my library somehow.”  
“Whatever you said, ya dork.” She teased.  
“I’m gonna head inside for a sec and wash off the dirt and gunk I got hit with. You two should chat for a bit.” Marceline continued.  
They watched as she floated inside and shut the door. For a minute, they didn’t say anything. Bubblegum broke the silence.  
“Look, I don’t want things to be awkward between us. I’ve done a ton of shady stuff in my past that I’m not proud of. So, I want to move on from what you did when you weren’t yourself.”  
“You don’t need to forgive me. Honestly, I don’t think I’ll be able to forgive myself. What I did for so long… kidnapping princesses, freezing people… it isn’t who I am.”  
“Listen. We don’t need to argue about forgiving or not forgiving. It happened. Nothing will change that. What we can do is work together so that we get along. We both know that we’ll be seeing a lot of each other.”  
“Huh. Marcy was worried that you would be harder on me. Don’t get me wrong, I’m glad her fears were misplaced. I’m just… surprised.”  
“Its funny. Marceline was convinced you wouldn’t let me forgive you easily. She was worried that you would try a ton of elaborate schemes to get me to forgive you, or try to convince me that you weren’t worthy of forgiveness. I mean, you did bring it up, but nowhere near the length I was expecting.”  
“Sorry.”  
“You don’t need to apologize. I admit, I do still have a couple of reservations. But at the end of the day, I really care about Marcy, you know. I can forgive you, for her sake.”  
“I see.”  
“Wait, no. That came out wrong, sorry. Look- I don’t know I’m not that good at this. I want to get along with you. I think we will get along as long as we move on from our past.”  
“I told Marcy that I couldn’t envision not getting along with someone as close to her as you. It isn’t really my decision to make, but I’m more than happy to move on. But I also want to make things right and not just ignore it. So, if you need a break or if you feel I should do something to make up for past actions, just let me know.”  
“I’ll think about it. But considering all the junk you’ve had to go through, I seriously doubt I’m going to ask anything.”


End file.
